RESIDENTS who are ‘living in fear’ of being involved in an accident on a fatal T-junction have urged road safety bosses to finally listen - after a home was damaged for the third time in recent years by a collision.
At about 6am last Monday a vehicle failed to stop at the junction with the B6428 at the end of Staincross Common and drove straight into the wall of a bungalow opposite.
The scene of the accident is just yards away from where Graham Silcock died when his mobility scooter was struck by a van on Shaw Lane in October 2023.
Graham’s widow, Rita Silcock, has joined others - including the damaged bungalow’s owner Ian Seaton-Brown, local campaigner John Race and councillors including Steve Hunt, Dickie Denton and Leyla Nayeri - in urging the authorities to act.
Rita said: “We’re calling for road safety measures to be put in place on Shaw Lane to make it safer for pedestrians and motorists.
“At the top of Shaw Lane there are staggered junctions with Paddock Road and Staincross Common.
“Something needs doing about these junctions before another fatal accident happens.”
Despite there being no serious injuries, Mr Seaton-Brown urged authorities to act once and for all to reduce vehicles’ speed and install improved signage to warn motorists about the junction.
“This is the third time in recent years that this has happened to our property,” he added.
“We are fed up and worried.
“It is only a matter of time before there is a fatality or serious injury unless meaningful measures are taken to prevent this happening again.”
In 2020 local resident Mr Race submitted a well-supported petition - signed by 239 people - to the council calling for pedestrian safety to be put first at these junctions but this was rejected.
Coun Steve Hunt told the Chronicle: “The council are well aware of resident concerns.
“Unfortunately, up to now there has been little action and things have been made more difficult by the extremely small budgets that the council allocate towards road safety.
“The council should consider extending the 20mph zone in Mapplewell, which is highly effective in reducing vehicle speed, to cover these areas of concern.
“I note that the government has recently launched a new Road Safety Strategy which will incorporate feedback gathered through consulting with residents.
“I support this change in approach and hope that the council are quick to adopt it.
“It’s time for swift and meaningful action in this part of Staincross.”
Coun James Higginbottom, cabinet spokesperson for environment and highways, said: “Following the recent incident at Staincross Common, we have liaised with our partners at South Yorkshire Police, as we do with all collisions and have carried out an initial review of the site to make sure there are no highway safety concerns.
“Our highways engineers have looked again at the location and confirmed that the junction is well-lit, clearly signed and meets national safety standards for a 30mph road.
“We understand people are worried and we’re thankful no one has been hurt in the recent incident.
“We take residents’ concerns seriously and will continue monitoring the site.
“However, we must base decisions on verified police collision data so we can focus our road safety funding on areas of concern.
“At the moment, the evidence doesn’t show that this junction needs extra work, but we’ll continue to listen to feedback and keep the situation under review.”
